Boundless Love Through Testimony

בפרשת שמע

On Parshas Shema.

This piece is presented as a teaching on the section of Shema in Parshas Vaetchanan.

ואהבת

"And you shall love" (Devarim 6:5).

The Sfas Emes anchors his thought in the verse "And you shall love Hashem your God," the command of love that opens the Shema.

מי לי בשמים כו' לא חפצתי בארץ

"Whom have I in heaven? And with You I desire nothing on earth" (Tehillim 73:25).

He cites Dovid HaMelech's declaration that he desires nothing in heaven or on earth besides Hashem, a love that wants nothing else.

דאיתא אהבה שאינה תלוי' בדבר אינה בטלה עולמות ולכן אהבת בנ"י אל הבורא בכל לבבך נפשך למסור הכל עבור ה' ממילא אינה תלוי' בשום דבר

For it is taught that a love which is not dependent upon any particular thing never ceases for all eternity; therefore, since the love of Bnei Yisrael for the Creator is "with all your heart and with all your soul" (Devarim 6:5) — to surrender everything for Hashem's sake — it consequently is not dependent upon anything at all.

Drawing on the principle that a love not dependent on any external thing endures forever, he explains that since Bnei Yisrael's love is total — heart and soul, surrendering everything — it is unconditional and therefore eternal.

והנה בנ"י נבראו להעיד על הבורא ית' כדכתי' אתם עדי

Now, Bnei Yisrael were created to bear witness to the Creator, may He be blessed, as it is written, "You are My witnesses" (Yeshayahu 43:10).

He introduces a second theme: the very purpose of Bnei Yisrael's creation is to serve as witnesses to the existence and Oneness of the Creator.

ומעידין עליו בכל יום פעמים באהבה

And they testify concerning Him each and every day, twice, with love.

This act of testimony is fulfilled twice daily through the recitation of Shema, said with love.

אך באמת בנ"י מיוחדים אליו ובחר בנו מכל עם א"כ יאמרו כי אנחנו נוגעין בעדות

Yet in truth, Bnei Yisrael are singularly bound to Him, and He has "chosen us from among every people" — so one might say that we are biased parties to this testimony, having a personal stake in it.

He raises a difficulty: since Bnei Yisrael are Hashem's chosen and uniquely close to Him, they appear to be interested parties whose testimony about Him could be dismissed as self-serving.

ע"כ סמך לזה ואהבת בכל נפשך כי כשמוסרין נפשותינו וכל מאודנו עבורו ית' א"כ מסולקים כל הנגיעות ואז הוא עדות אמת

Therefore the verse juxtaposes to this "and you shall love... with all your soul" — for when we surrender our very souls and all that we have for His sake, may He be blessed, then all personal bias is removed, and only then is it testimony of truth.

The answer lies in the adjacent command of "with all your soul": through mesiras nefesh, surrendering one's life and all one possesses for Hashem, every selfish stake is stripped away, leaving testimony that is pure and true.

ובאמת כך הוא כפי האהבה ומס"נ שנמצא באדם כך הוא יכול להעיד על אחדותו ית'

And in truth it is so: in accordance with the measure of love and self-sacrifice that is found within a person, so is he able to bear witness to His Oneness, may He be blessed.

He establishes the first direction of the relationship: a person's capacity to testify to Hashem's Oneness is proportional to the love and self-sacrifice within him.

וגם זה אמת כפי העדות ויחוד שמו ית' שאנו מיוחדים

And this too is true: in accordance with the testimony and the unifying of His Name, may He be blessed — that we are singularly bound to Him —

He then establishes the reverse direction: it is precisely through the testimony and the unification of Hashem's Name, by which we are bound to Him,

כך זוכין אל האהבה כי לשניהם אין להם שיעור:

so does one merit to attain this love; for to both of them there is no measure or limit.

that a person merits the love itself — and because neither the love nor the testimony has any limit, they continually feed and elevate one another without end.

Summary: The Sfas Emes builds the section of Shema around two intertwined avodos: the command of "And you shall love" and the calling of Bnei Yisrael to be Hashem's witnesses. Because the love demanded is total — with all one's heart and soul, surrendering everything for His sake — it is a love that depends on nothing external and therefore never ceases for all eternity. He then confronts a question on our role as witnesses: since we are Hashem's chosen and uniquely bound to Him, our testimony might seem self-interested; the answer is mesiras nefesh, for surrendering one's life and possessions for Hashem removes every personal bias and renders the testimony true. Finally he shows that love and testimony nourish each other in both directions: the measure of one's love and self-sacrifice empowers one's testimony to His Oneness, while the testimony and unification of His Name in turn draw down ever greater love. Since neither the love nor the testimony has any limit, the two rise together without end.